New information technology applications for local development in Asian and pacific countries
Abstract
Information Technology for Development Volume 4 Number 1. © 1989 Oxford University Press. New Information Technology Applications for Local Development in Asian and Pacific Countries Mohan Kaul Commonwealth Secretariat London Nitin Patel Khalid Shams Asia & Pacific Development Centre Kuala Lumpur Introductio n Most Asian countries have witnessed in recent years a rapid expansion in the use of microcomputers in government systems. Although the private sector is increasingly playing an important role, the key responsibility for IT development—as demonstrated by the experience of Singapore and other countries—lies in fact with the government. It is through government initiatives that computers have been introduced both in the public and private sectors; they have been used for socio-economic development at local, regional and national levels; they have also promoted development of sectoral programs in such areas as education, public works, housing, agriculture and health care. Much of the development, however, has been on an adhoc and piecemeal basis in the absence of a coherent national policy for promotion of IT. A major constraint has been the inadequate communications infrastructure which has in turn accentuated reliance on stand-alone micros. Where large central information systems were developed, these have languished due to difficulties in